Please oblige The Korea Post media with an extensive New Year interview!

Excellency!

The Korea Post has five media outlets, 3 in English and 2 in Korean, and they are mostly REAL TIME meaning that we publish the interviews REAL TIME 24 hours a day.

After over 19 months in office following his inauguration and the consequent pursuit of a somewhat leftist-oriented line of policies, President Moon Jae-in has at length shown signs of a turnaround to a pro-international cooperation stance.

We feel that now is a good time to expose Korea to the international community and vice versa, and, for this purpose, The Korea Post is conducting an extensive New Year Ambassador Interview with a selected number of ambassadors.

I would greatly appreciate Your Excellency’s kind interest in this program.

One out of four chief executives at South Korea's 500 largest companies were outsourced, a market research firm said Wednesday. As of Friday, there were a total of 657 CEOs at the country's leading firms. Of the total, the career histories of 566 are known, and of those, 25.3 percent, or 143, were recruited from outside the company, CEO Score said in a statement.

Gov't mulls special pardons at centennial of independence movement

The government is considering granting special pardons to minor offenders and others deemed fit in the celebration of the 100th anniversary of the anti-Japanese independence movement and the establishment of the Korean provisional government, officials said Thursday. The Ministry of Justice has sent documents to district police agencies in the country notifying them of the plan and asking them to submit a list of possible candidates, officials familiar with the matter said.

Moon to address nation in first press conference of year

President Moon Jae-in was set to address his nation Thursday in a press conference to mark the start of the New Year. The press conference will be held at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae from 10 a.m., starting with a 20-minute address by the president. His keynote speech will be followed by a question and answer session where the president will take questions from about 200 journalists on various issues ranging from inter-Korean ties and economic conditions to local politics, likely including the recent controversy over the alleged surveillance of civilians by the top executive office.

President Moon Jae-in has reaffirmed his commitment to improving the nation's wealth distribution. Moon on Thursday held a news conference at the top office, laying out his plans for the year 2019. Moon said that his focus this year is on making sure the effects of his inclusive growth strategy are felt by the people. While pledging to prove the success of his economic policies, Moon said the nation's conglomerates and small- and medium-sized businesses will all grow together under his policy assistance.

CCTV: Kim Jong-un Reaffirms Commitment to Denuclearization

The leaders of North Korea and China have reaffirmed their positions on the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and expressed hope for positive results from the second U.S.-North Korea summit. Chinese state media on Thursday issued reports on the outcome of talks between North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Chinese President Xi Jinping during Kim's fourth trip to China. Kim and Xi held two days of meetings in Beijing on Tuesday and Wednesday during Kim's four-day trip, which came ahead of the imminent summit between Kim and U.S. President Donald Trump.

New Chief of Staff Stresses Hard Work, Communication, Discipline

President Moon Jae-in’s new chief of staff has urged his employees to work hard, actively communicate and demonstrate self-discipline. In a letter sent on Wednesday to members of the Office of Presidential Chief of Staff, Noh Young-min spoke positively about the top office’s performance over the past 20 months since Moon took office. Noh highlighted efforts to bring peace and prosperity to the Korean Peninsula and to build an innovative and inclusive nation as particularly positive accomplishments.

A cabbie presumed to have set himself and his taxi on fire in yet another apparent suicide protest over a planned commercial ride-sharing service, died in hospital early Thursday, police said. A sedan taxi near Gwanghwamun Station in central Seoul caught fire on Wednesday night. The driver, only identified by his last name Lim, was moved from his vehicle with severe burns on much of his body. Lim's death makes the second case in which a taxi driver apparently killed himself to protest the carpool service. Last month, a 57-year-old taxi driver from Seoul set himself ablaze in protest against Kakao T.

N.K. leader in Beijing for talks with Xi ahead of possible summit with Trump

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un held a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping Tuesday, sources said, in an effort to coordinate strategies ahead of his possible second summit with U.S. President Donald Trump. A special train carrying Kim and his wife, Ri Sol-ju, arrived at a highly secure station in Beijing at around 10:55 a.m. Escorted by Chinese police, he and his entourage headed in prearranged limousines to Diaoyutai State Guesthouse in Beijing.

Suspected bird flu cases discovered in Gangwon Province

Birds that may have been infected with avian influenza (AI) have been discovered on the eastern coast of South Korea, the agriculture ministry said Thursday. The Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs said an antibody of the H7N7 strain was found in droppings of wild birds in Gangneung, 240 kilometers east of Seoul. The ministry said it will take up to two days to determine if the birds were infected with the highly pathogenic virus. The government said it is carefully examining wild birds within 10 kilometers of the site where the droppings were found and is carrying out disinfection at poultry farms and households nearby.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has reaffirmed his commitment to the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and vowed efforts to produce good results from his second summit with US President Donald Trump, Chinese media reports said Thursday. Kim made the promise during his summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Tuesday, according to Xinhua News Agency.

Full text of President Moon's New Year speech

Fellow Koreans, Around this time last year, I visited the Jincheon National Training Center to pray for the success of the PyeongChang Olympic Winter Games. From the Opening Ceremony until the Closing Ceremony of the PyeongChang Games, Gangwon-do Province’s harsh cold weather was what kept the Government in suspense. However, that freezing cold helped bring the entire world as well as South and North Korea together in harmony, making it possible for the peace Olympics to succeed. There is a saying, “Winter should be as cold as it has to be.” Sufficiently cold winter weather keeps pests and diseases from harming crops and produces a rich harvest of barley.

Despite the widespread anxiety due to slowing growth momentum, the global economy is unlikely to face a recession this year, and high yield opportunities continue to exist in the US equity market and emerging markets, according to a US-based asset management company on Wednesday. “Growth momentum is certainly slowing down but when it comes to the question (of) whether such slowdown means a possible recession, our answer is no,” said David Wong, a senior investment strategist at AllianceBernstein Asset Management Korea, at a press conference.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has reaffirmed his commitment to the denuclearization and vowed efforts to produce good results from his second summit with U.S. President Donald Trump, Chinese state media said Thursday. Kim made the pledge during his summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on Tuesday, according to Xinhua News Agency. Kim was in China for a four-day trip, his fourth visit to the neighboring ally in about 10 months.

Economy reeling from unemployment

The annual unemployment rate has hit another record high due to various factors ranging from restructuring in manufacturing and slow population growth to a slowdown in services and small businesses. The number of jobs created in fiscal 2018 stood at 97,000 from the previous year, according to Statistics Korea, Wednesday. This marks the lowest job creation since 2009 when 87,000 people lost their jobs in the aftermath of the global financial crisis, which also hit the local capital market and hurt manufacturers' finances.

Businesspeople request access to Gaeseong complex

South Korean businesspeople who invested in the North's Gaeseong Industrial Complex, have asked the government to allow them to visit the now-closed factory park, citing the need for maintenance of their facilities there. One hundred and twenty-three South Korean companies were forced to shut down their operations there in February 2016. They have since formed an emergency planning committee, and requested access to the complex six times, which were all rejected by the government. On Wednesday, the committee submitted their seventh request to the Ministry of Unification.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un wrapped up his visit to China and headed back to Pyongyang by train on Wednesday afternoon. Earlier in the day, Kim visited China's Economic Technological Development Area and toured a pharmaceutical factory run by Tong Ren Tang, the largest producer of traditional medicine in the country. He then had lunch with Chinese President Xi Jinping in a Beijing restaurant before boarding his train.

Korea Suffers Lawyer Glut

Demand for lawyers is falling and recent graduates often struggle to find jobs as law schools proliferate. Of the estimated 1,500 newly qualified lawyers joining the job market every year, just 200-250 can hope to land a coveted job with the country's top 10 law firms, who have the business more or less sewn up between them. The number of qualified lawyers in Korea broke the 10,000 mark in 2010, a relatively small proportion compared to wildly litigious countries like the U.S., and reached 25,000 Sunday.

Seoul to Send Flu Drugs to N.Korea

South Korea will send about 200,000 doses of the influenza antiviral drug Tamiflu to North Korea. A Unification Ministry official said on Tuesday it will deliver the drugs to the border town of Kaesong on Friday along with 50,000 rapid diagnostic test kits donated by a private company. This is the first delivery of Tamiflu to the North since the Lee Myung-bak administration sent 400,000 doses in 2009, at the height of the bird flu scare, as well as 100,000 doses of Relenza.

On Jan. 8, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made an unannounced visit to China, where he held a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping. This was Kim’s fourth visit to China since assuming power. Considering that Kim’s previous visits to China were clustered around the first North Korea-US summit last year, this visit may well signal that the second North Korea-US summit is imminent. We hope that this summit between the leaders of North Korea and China will lead to a breakthrough in the North Korea-US denuclearization negotiations, which are currently at a deadlock, and pave the way for the second North Korea-US summit.

President of World Bank announces resignation

Jim Yong Kim announced on Jan. 7 that he will be stepping down as president of the World Bank as of Feb. 1. Kim, 59, became not only the first ethnic Korean but the first-ever Asian to head the World Bank in 2012. Observers offered different analyses for his sudden decision to step down with over three years left in his second five-year term. “I will be stepping down as @worldbank Group president on February 1,” Kim tweeted on Jan. 7. “It’s been the greatest privilege I could have ever imagined to lead the dedicated staff of this great institution to bring us closer to a world that is finally free of poverty,” he added.

The Pohang branch of Daegu District Court announced on Jan. 8 that it had approved the seizure of South Korean assets of the Japanese company Nippon Steel and Sumitomo Metal as requested by legal representatives of victims of forced labor by the company’s former incarnation Nippon Steel during Japan’s colonial occupation of Korea. The decision heralds an even deeper chill to come for South Korea-Japan relations, with Tokyo previously announcing plans to begin dispute settlement procedures according to its 1965 Claims Settlement Agreement with South Korea if seizure procedures were initiated against a Japanese company.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un made a visit to China once again, boasting close ties with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Experts say the reason behind the visit is because Kim is failing to convince his people of the need for nuclear negotiations with the U.S. Moreover, the visit is based on the concern that China is not supporting North Korea economically as it had expected. “According to a North Korean official, Kim is failing to convince his people of the need for nuclear negotiations with the U.S.,” a North Korean source in China said.

CES 2019 opens in Las Vegas

"Gesture control" has become the buzzword at the CES 2019, which officially opened in Las Vegas on Tuesday (local time). Visitors at the Kia Motors' booth looked amazed as they experienced gesture control features, watching movie-like scenes before their eyes. Passengers in the READ (Real-time Emotion Adaptive Driving) concept car stared at monitors as they selected menus on an invisible screen, which also provide navigation or map information called "V (virtual) Touch." A small camera attached in the interior of the car controls the features of the vehicle by recognizing finger and eye movements.

Sejong Center for the Performing Arts initiates pipe organ repair

The pipe organ of the grand theater at Sejong Center for the Performing Arts is out of service. “The use of pipe organ has been halted from January due to severe aging,” Kim Sung-kyu, president of Sejong Center for the Performing Arts, announced during a press conference on Wednesday. As such, there shall be no pipe organ performance at the grand theater of the arts complex.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un met with Chinese President Xi Jinping for a second consecutive day and toured a pharmaceutical plant in Beijing on Wednesday before leaving the city later that afternoon. Kim’s fourth trip to China within the past 10 months came at a critical point ahead of a possible second summit with U.S. President Donald Trump and set the tone for the North Korean leader’s 2019 diplomatic overtures. Around 8:50 a.m. Wednesday morning, Kim left the Diaoyutai State Guesthouse, his lodgings during his Beijing visit, and visited industrial facilities at an economic and technological development zone in Yizhuang.

Unemployment at 17-year high, job gains slow

Finance Minister Hong Nam-ki said Wednesday that he felt a heavy sense of responsibility as job figures failed to reach expectations. “Over the next three years, getting a job is likely to be difficult,” the minister warned while attending a public institution job fair. According to Statistics Korea on Wednesday, the number of employed people in Korea rose by only 97,000 in 2018, the lowest increase since 2009, when 87,000 jobs were lost. The unemployment rate is now 3.8 percent, a 17-year high.

Court approves seizure of Nippon Steel shares

A local court approved the seizure of assets of a Japanese steelmaker by Korean plaintiffs forced to work for the company during Japan’s colonial rule, a court spokesman revealed Tuesday. The Pohang branch of the Daegu District Court ruled Jan. 3 to approve the seizure of 81,075 shares owned by Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal in a joint venture with Korea’s largest steelmaker, Posco. The shares are worth around 380 million won (around $340,000). The plaintiffs’ lawyer said this seizure would only compensate two of the four plaintiffs in the case. They will be taken from around 2.34 million shares owned by Nippon Steel in PNR, a rotary heat furnace technology joint venture with Posco, valued at around 11 billion won.

Kim Jong-un and Xi Jinping Want China to Take Part in “Peace Treaty” after an End-of-War Declaration

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un departed on a four-day trip to China and attended a summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing on January 8. Chairman Kim opted to visit China as his first effort in summit diplomacy in 2019. He exhibited the close relations between North Korea and China and discussed the political situation on the Korean Peninsula, including a second North Korea-United States summit. This afternoon, Chairman Kim and President Xi held a summit at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, according to the Chinese state-owned CCTV.

The court approved a request for an attachment of assets in South Korea owned by Nippon Steel & Sumitomo Metal (formerly Nippon Steel) filed by the victims of forced labor during the Japanese occupation. After the Supreme Court ruled in favor of compensations for forced labor during Japanese occupation, Japan drew the "Maginot Line" at when its companies suffer property damages. Thus Japan is expected to fiercely oppose the latest decision. Earlier Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe referred to the application for an attachment and said, "It is extremely regrettable and our government takes it seriously." Some people predict that the already rocky relationship between South Korea and Japan will head toward a disaster.

Rhyu Si-min's Alileo, A Sensation: Rhyu Emerges as the Relief Pitcher for the Ruling Party

It looks like Rhyu Si-min (60), the chairman of the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation, will be the relief pitcher for the Moon Jae-in government. Despite numerous public statements that he has no intention to run for public office, Rhyu's YouTube debut was a hit as he represented the ruling party and government and fought the conservative press and opposition parties. Some people claim this is a deja vu of when Rhyu abandoned his role as a "knowledge retailer" and rolled up his sleeves as the “political security chief” of the presidential candidate Roh Moo-hyun in 2002.

As a slow starter in the fast-growing autonomous vehicle industry, LG Electronics partnered with American tech company Microsoft to beef up its autonomous vehicle and infotainment capability, following the footsteps of its domestic rival, Samsung Electronics. Under a memorandum of understanding signed at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, LG agreed to utilize Microsoft's artificial intelligence know-how to develop technologies such as ADAS (advanced driver assistance system), DSM (driver-status monitoring) cameras and multipurpose front camera products.

South Korea’s stock market was lifted by a positive nuance from the ongoing trade negotiations between the United States and China. The main Kospi closed Wednesday 1.95 percent higher at 2,064.71. The tech-heavy Kosdaq finished 1.68 percent up at 679.74. The rebound came a day after an upset from top electronics stocks in their fourth-quarter earnings. In its fourth-quarter guidance, Samsung Electronics Co. reported an estimated 39 percent on-quarter plunge in its operating profit, its poorest performance in nearly two years.

Passenger traffic at Incheon International Airport hit record in 2018

South Korea’s Incheon International Airport is expected to be the fifth-busiest airport in the world after annual international passenger traffic at the country’s main gateway hit the record high of 67.68 million last year. According to Incheon International Airport Corp. (IIAC) on Wednesday, Incheon International Airport’s total annual passenger traffic reached all-time high 68.26 million in 2018, up 10 percent from a year ago. The airport handled total 387,000 flights, up 7.6 percent during the same period, and the total number of international transfer passengers also increased 9.6 percent to 8.02 million last year.

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